Hypothermic Half

Tomorrow is the big day! I've been running in frigid temperatures and on icy roads since December to prepare for the Hypothermic Half Marathon. I have to say, I LOVE the name of this race. When people find out that this exists they are usually stunned, think I'm crazy and are really glad it's not them running it. Makes me feel pretty tough though.

I feel pretty good about the race. The weather is supposed to be fairly decent, -5 is the high. I know I have prepared for the distance, although I haven't put in as many runs as I would have liked to. I have good friends who will be on the course and my parents will be cheering me on at the finish line. I have also heard really great things about the brunch that is served after the race.

Tomorrow I will try to post a race review.
Now it is on to a full day of cleaning, eating, watching tv, crafts, baking, report card writing.
Wish me luck :)

Negative Splits

After yesterday's run I tried to shake it off and work towards a better outcome next time. Well, I couldn't stop thinking about the run. The feeling was what I imagine my husband experiences when he cooks a meal he's not happy with. You see, my husband is an amazing cook but every now and then he makes something he's not entirely happy with. Rather than just letting it go he will cook amazing meals until he feels like he's redeemed himself. I don't mind this too much as it means delicious meals for me :)

Today was the day to redeem myself after yesterday's run. One of my running buddies, Mike,  suggested "negative splits." I did some research and decided to give it a try. Here's a good link from Running World Magazine.

Learn How To Run Negative Splits at Runner's World.com


I decided to run by myself and without music (this in itself is a huge challenge for me).

Here's how it went:
Lap 1: 9:35
Lap 2: 9:39
Lap 3: 9:24
1st half average: 9:32
Lap 4: 9:39
Lap 5: 9:32
Lap 6: 9:23
2nd half average: 9.31


Well, it wasn't perfect but it felt a lot better than yesterday! The negative thoughts were gone, my breathing was a lot better and I had more left in the tank at the end. I also did a little cool down run afterwards. Running negative splits is definitely something that makes sense to me and something I'm going to try and incorporate into my training.


Stats:
6.67 miles
1:06 min.
9:58 min/mile (this is including my very slow cool down)

180 bpm
-17

Brrr!

Today was our 6 mile "race pace" run. I felt like I had a really good week and a super lead up to today's run. I relaxed yesterday, ate really well, lots of water and tea to drink and a great sleep. It should have been an awesome run.

Our pace was supposed to be 8:45 min. miles. All along I've felt like this is faster than I'm capable of.  Turned out to be mentally one of the hardest runs I've done in a long time. My brain was full of negative thoughts, tension and a great urge to just stop and walk it home. I have to thank Michael, who as we were coming up to 3 miles said "Hey guys, look how beautiful it is!" All I could do was mutter a quick "Thanks" but it really meant a lot to me. Sometimes I get so focused on staring at the pavement, watching my pace and trying to keep up that I miss the beauty and the joy of the run. So thanks again Mike!!

We didn't hit our pace but I'm choosing not to be too hard on myself because it was really cold and somewhat slippery. Also, I really missed the lively conversation we usually have. Today all I could hear was my heavy breathing!

Here's the breakdown of our pace per 10 min. interval. I think it's pretty obvious we started out a little too fast. Also, race day I think we should walk a little faster.

Lap 1: 8:50
Lap 2: 9:05
Lap 3: 9:29
Lap 4: 9:11
Lap 5: 9:12
Lap 6: 8:45

Here's some photos from today's run at -37.

 

This is how all of my water bottles looked after 4 miles, completely frozen! My hands were also too cold to bother with sport beans. Let's hope race day is a little warmer.

Joanne and I with our frosty eyelashes on. 

Boy was I ever happy to be done with that run! Now, on to bacon and poached eggs :)

Stats:

6.02 miles

57:26 min.

9.33 min/mile

183 bpm (yikes)

-37 degrees

Spring is in the air!

The Hypo Half is in 12 days!!! We are officially starting to taper. It's always at this point when I finally feel like I'm in the groove. I don't have a flu or strep throat and the weather is warm and beautiful. Tonight I went to the 1/2 marathon clinic and we talked about race etiquette and how to prepare for race day. Now that we've run the course and I've got two half marathons under my belt I don't feel too anxious, well any more than usual.

After the clinic we went for our tempo run. Running on pavement felt SO good! We had to avoid some puddles, slush and ice but compared to the last couple of months it was heavenly. This was also the first run in months where I didn't have to wear 3 layers of pants and multiple jackets. The result was awesome! I felt like I was struggling a little to keep up but that's not really anything new. Then I looked at my watch and realized we were running under 9 min miles! We finished our run with a little sprint through the parking lot and ended up averaging 8:50 minute miles.

For days now I've been thinking about how amazing the weather is right now and the crazy cold weather I've been running in for the last couple months.
I'd like to present to you my winter wardrobe:

No wonder I'm faster without all this crazy gear on!!!
Stats:
3.5 miles
31 minutes
8.50 min/mile
forgot my heart rate monitor again!

Beautiful day to run!

Today was such a beautiful day! It was sunny and warm. At some points I had to fight the urge to complain about being too warm. Then I thought back to last Sunday when I was so cold I wanted to cry.

We started off at the Assiniboine Park duck pond. From there we set out on the course we will be running in the Hypothermic Half Marathon in two weeks. It was really nice to get a preview of the course. Also nice to complete our last long run before the race.

Today I was trying a number of new things.
1) new fuel belt! I was wearing a single bottle belt but the way the bottle was shaped forced me to wear the belt high on my waist and really tight. This often gave me stomach aches and last week I decided it was time to move on. I went to the running room and tried on a bunch of different belts. Of course I had to have the purple one that they didn't have in stock so I finally picked it up yesterday. It sits lower on the hips, carries 4 bottles and is my favourite colour!

2)coconut water (it's been out of stock at Organza for a really long time). I mix it with my Vega sport and a little Gatorade for flavour. I used this mixture for most of the summer and it was good to have it back. The taste isn't the best thing in the world but I like that it's mostly natural and has a lot of nutritional benefits. I was told about the Vega sport product by a friend of mine. After doing some research I decided to give it a try. It does not look or smell too appealing but I have had some really good results. For more info, check out their website and also Bendan Brazier's blog.


http://myvega.com

3)sport beans. They were fruit punch flavour and made by Jelly Belly. I have always thought it logical to start eating well before you feel really tired on a long run so I decided to eat one bean at each walk break starting at mile 1. I think this approach went well. It's hard to tell because I really didn't eat enough yesterday and what I did eat was pretty terrible for me. My legs felt tired for most of the run but my stomach didn't get sick. I guess that's a start?


The best part of today's run was the people I run with. I am so lucky to run with such a great group of people. On a bad run, they encourage me to keep running. On a good run they celebrate with me and push me to be my best!

Stats:
12.55 miles
2:12 min
10:33 pace
Forgot my heart rate monitor today.
+2 today!

slick shoes!

Tonight I ended up sitting through 3 clinics at the Running Room before getting out for my run. Thankfully they were all pretty interesting and informative :)

After sitting for so long I was pretty anxious. Sadly I get anxious before almost every group run. I worry about things like if I've dressed well enough for the weather, if I will be able to keep up with my group, if I'll have to go to the bathroom, etc. I know these things are silly but the longer I sit there the more anxious I get.

Today the anxiety and cold worked in my favour. We did an out and back straight down Grant from the store to Chalfont and back. Joanne and I ran together and just tried to keep the faster group in front of us in sight. It was super icy but I tried to put my nerves aside and run as quick as possible.

Well Joanne and I thought we had made a little better time than we actually did and my heart rate probably could have been a little higher, considering we chatted for part of the run. All of that aside, the run felt really good and faster than I thought I was capable of tonight.

Tomorrow we're heading indoors for some speed training. Hopefully I'm not too sore to walk tomorrow.

Stats:
4.03 miles
38 min
9:24 pace
176 bpm
-26 degrees

-Connie

Sunday Long Run

This morning we set out on a long cold slow run. When I checked the temperature this morning it said -12 but feels like -23 with the wind. Well, it felt a lot colder than that running into the north wind! I had brought my balaclava with me but by the point I really wanted it put it on the idea of taking off my mitts to get it out won over.

As usual, the first 3 or 4 miles felt really hard, cold, and way too fast. Once we got out of the wind the run actually felt quite nice. There were some icy patches and I think I was pretty tense as now my arms are really tired!

At around 5 miles many people took out their gels. I managed 1 jelly bean but I still really hate eating while running. This is something I'm definitely going to have to figure out. 

I chatted with some really nice people today and it always makes the time pass more quickly.

After snuggling up in my bed for an hour and having a delicious breakfast I'm ready to get on with the day!

Anyone out there reading this have suggestions for fuel while running? I can't have any synthetic sugars so that makes things a little complicated.

Stats:
10.66 miles
1:50 minutes
10:23 min/mile
175 bpm
Very cold when running into the wind!

Back to School

I woke up this morning thinking about running. I was a little worried about my car being at school so I decided to get out there right away.

I decided wearing ice grips would be a good idea after the run yesterday. I don't usually like to wear them because they feel really weird. They are great on ice but as soon as you hit cement they feel very strange and I hate the sound they make. I can't wait to run on regular cement again!!
Anyway, I made it to school and my car was fine :)

Stats:
2.8 miles
28 minutes
10.04 min/mile
177 bpm

running home

Today was the perfect day to run home from work. Since we had an inservice today I did not have to bring my laptop or a change of clothes. I went to work in my workout clothes. I left my car at work and plotted my path home.

When I mapped my route online it worked out to be less than 5k. How does it take me 25 minutes to get to work in my car?!?!? Darn you Kenaston Blvd! I decided to take a very round-about route.

Anyway, I started out at my school in St. James near Century. I headed down Berry all the way to Portage.  As I was crossing portage I realized that the other side of the street had turned into more of a lake than a sidewalk. I tried to avoid the puddle and slipped right into it! Both feet were ankle deep in water and slush. I think I shrieked a little and people were definitely laughing looking.  At this point I almost called for a pickup as I was worried about how cold my feet would get. Turns out running in wet wool socks isn't too bad, they warm up right away.

I continued through Assiniboine park, down grant towards Kenaston and down Kenaston home. The paths were either sheer ice or total slush and puddles the entire way. I can feel that my stabilizing muscles will be sore tomorrow! I'll also have to put some newspaper in my shoes to make sure they're nice and dry for tomorrow.

Stats:
42 min.
4.18 miles
10.18 min/mile
178 bpm (heart rate)
very wet shoes and pant legs!

-Connie

So HOT!

Today was my first run in a week. I went to the Pan Am. I had never been there before and didn't actually even know where the track was. Well, after meeting one of my students in the change room I marched up to the "track." I didn't realize it would be around the pool and SO hot and humid!! This seems fairly obvious now that I'm home. I was over dressed in my running pants and t-shirt. I definitely should have worn shorts. Also, I was all geared up with my watch, heart rate monitor and ipod suffle. I started my watch only to realize the battery was completely dead :( Oh well, at least I had music which I haven't listened to since the summer.
 
Anyway, I started out with 4 easy laps to warm up. Followed by a speedy lap,  just short of a sprint with a slow lap for recovery, times 4. Then finished up with 5 slow laps to cool down. By the end I was just starting to find my rythm but the heat was definitely getting to me and the thoughts of the dinner my husband was preparing were taking over!

Pros of Pan Am:

• cost $3
• not having to get bundled up
• bathrooms close by
• lots of distractions to make the time pass quickly
• being around other people working out helps me to not feel sorry for myself

Cons:

• going around and around
• heat and humidity
• weird floor texture
• low water fountains that make me dizzy after sprinting

-Connie

109 days to go!

Well, tonight was the first night of my full marathon clinic! We will be preparing to run the Fargo Marathon on May 21, 2011. *I should add that I did not run tonight as I have strep throat and am only on day 2 of antibiotics.

It looks like it will be a really great group of people to run with. I believe I have the least running experience of anyone in my group so I have a great opportunity to learn from these amazing runners.

Currently I am also part of a half-marathon clinic that is gearing up for the Hypothermic Half Marathon at the end of February. The clinic has been going well and I have met some really amazing people. 

In my last clinic by this point in training I was in serious PAIN. My back and knees were causing huge pain and I was spending a lot of time with my chiropractor, physiotherapist and ice packs. This time around I have been virtually pain free. I will give some credit to my muscles developing and getting stronger but I also think that running a little less has been a good break for my body.

I have been running with a 2:00 pace group for the Hypo Half but I would be happy okay with anything under  2:15.

-Connie